In Good Times and Bad
by railise
Summary: Three times Arthur proposed and Gwen said no, and one time Gwen proposed and Arthur said yes. Third-place winner in Round 2 of 4 evermore's Arthur/Gwen Last Author Standing at LiveJournal. This summary was the prompt.


The first time Arthur proposed to Guinevere was, if he said so himself, very romantic.

Well... it _should_ have been romantic, anyway.

He even helped set the whole thing up, rather than making Merlin do it. Part of the reason was that he could not be certain the dollophead would get it done right. Part of the reason was that long-ago chicken dinner at Guinevere's house; he figured that he really should have a hand in this one. If there was ever a disastrous time to disappoint one's beloved, a proposal was most certainly it.

Mainly, he simply wanted to do this for her.

So, after setting strict orders that no one should set eye on nor foot in the castle courtyard, he and Merlin had draped the entire area in a shimmery, pink fabric, which Merlin assured him would catch the torchlight brilliantly. Arthur was not so certain, but it reminded him of one of Guinevere's dresses, which was enough to make him like it. They had strewn the cobblestones with rose petals, and Merlin put something on the roof that was making bubbles drift down over the scene (Arthur did not want to know how, since it would likely prove to give him a headache at the thought).

The final touch was a small table swathed in more of the pink cloth and rose petals, with a candelabra in the center and a lavish dinner set out: stuffed duck rubbed with lavender and mint, glazed turnips, chilled pears, and miniature cakes for dessert. A sparkling wine completed the meal; but the evening was not complete until he had led Guinevere into the courtyard, laughing because he kept making sure that she was not peeking around the hand she held over her eyes.

She had the most wonderful laugh, gentle and genuine, just like her; and Arthur had to grin, loving the sound and the woman making it. He never thought he would fall in love this deeply, but he was grateful that it had happened.

He had not been this nervous since his first skirmish, yet his nerves were tempered by satisfaction at how delighted she was when he finally gave her the okay to look. Everything went so well, in fact, that he was much calmer by the time he said softly, "There is something I need to ask you," and went to kneel down beside her.

That was when a wyvern decided to sweep in and set the fabric draperies aflame.

He fought it off and turned to Guinevere, who was dodging firey bits of fabric that fluttered down around them as she ran to get help. Soon, the courtyard would be swarming with people, and after all that had gone into setting the evening up, he could not help but call, "Guinevere, wait!"

Pausing before running up the steps so that he could catch up to her, she brushed some ash from her face and hurriedly asked, "What is it?"

Rushing over, he panted, "Will you marry me?"

It made even him cringe to hear how awkward that sounded, and she stared at him in disbelief for a beat before grabbing her skirts to resume her dash into the castle. "Are you serious?"

As the warning bells began clanging, he muttered, "I was."

"Arthur, this is hardly the time!"

She was right, but now that the question was out, he needed her answer. "I know, but... yes or no?"

Water splashed nearby as people extinguished the flames from upper windows. "Not like this," she said quietly.

"Right. Sorry." He understood, but was still disappointed as he went to oversee the firefighting efforts.

It took him awhile to build up to asking again. Actually, it took being feverish from a llamhigyn y dwr bite.

Somehow, he was wracked with chills while his entire body felt like it was being roasted from within. Guinevere's hand holding his own kept him grounded, and as she wiped the sweat from his brow, he was humbled by her caring devotion. He knew he wanted her by his side always, and needed to be by hers. After a few tries, he finally managed to chatter, "M-m-marr-rry m-m-me."

The worry in her eyes deepened. "Arthur..."

"P-p-p-please."

Gaius's voice came from another part of the room. "You can accept; he's unlikely to remember it when he recovers."

"That is exactly why I'm saying no," she replied softly, leaning over to place a sweet kiss on Arthur's cheek.

In fact, he did remember later on, although he appreciated that she had turned him down then, since he had been in no condition to properly acknowledge a yes.

The next time Gwen received a proposal, it was actually four proposals.

Intending to walk into town, she stepped outside- and halted in astonishment at the sight before her. Arthur, Gwaine, Lancelot, and Merlin were engaged in some sort of shoving match in the courtyard (well, it mainly consisted of the first three; Merlin was sort of dancing around the outside of the rumble, contributing an opportunistic push when he saw the chance). They had already assembled quite the audience, but it instantly became clear that Gwen was the audience they sought, as they rushed over to the bottom of the stairs upon spotting her.

"Gwen, my rose!" Gwaine cried out, hand going to his chest.

"My muse!" Lancelot got down on both knees.

"My queen!" Arthur smirked at the other two, evidently feeling that he had trumped them.

"My avenging angel!" Merlin tried, earning confused looks from everyone. He shrugged uncomfortably. "She fights well."

Baffled, she asked, "What's going on?"

The query regained their attention. With the first three men still puzzling over his declaration, Merlin had the upper hand. "I love you, Gwen; I don't know why I never realized it before, but now it's all I do know. Marry me!"

"_What?_"

"Ignore the whelp; he would not know love if it bit him on the arse. Marry _me!_" Gwaine cried, over Merlin's protesting "Hey!" at his dismissal.

Lancelot took a half-scoot forward, still on his knees. "They cannot understand you, not like I can," he said a little more quietly. "Marry me?"

"Guinevere." Her gaze shot to Arthur, who was watching her with no small degree of self-assurance, a smile dancing around his eyes. "Marry me."

She may have loved him and the way he said her name, but it was clear that they were all out of their minds just then. Shaking her head, she turned back toward the castle to go find Gaius; her walk into town could wait until this was cleared up. "No, to all of you," she called over her shoulder.

The sounds of a renewed scuffle drifted to her ears as she went inside, and continued in the courtyard until she and Gaius defeated the brownie which had caused the situation.

All four men apologized and did their best to make it up to her. Arthur especially felt like a heel, since that made three botched proposals from him. At that rate, he would be lucky if she did not leave the country to find herself a quiet, unassuming husband, one who had no dealings with wicked beasts.

Weeks passed, and he could not find a good way to broach the subject again. Fortunately, Guinevere seemed fine continuing as they had been going before the series of debacles began. One lovely day several weeks later, she invited him for a ride into the countryside. After obtaining a picnic lunch from the kitchens and threatening Merlin with unimaginable pain if he followed them, Arthur set off with her.

Reaching a field, she drew to a halt and dismounted, so he followed suit. The horses' reins in one hand each, their other hands joined, they walked quietly through the tall grasses, enjoying the sunshine and one another's company.

"I'm a little disappointed," Gwen said suddenly.

Surprised, Arthur looked over at her. He thought the outing had been going nicely. "Why?"

She drew to a halt and turned to him, smiling almost shyly. "We are all alone, sharing a beautiful day, not an unnatural creature in sight; it seems like the perfect chance to ask me something."

Obviously, she had a specific something in mind which he should be asking, but the only thing that sort of came to his mind was marriage, and he doubted that was it. Wracking his brain and feeling slightly thick when he came up with nothing, Arthur cautiously inquired, "Would you like a drink? There's a waterskin-"

She let out an amused sigh, and her smile grew. "Arthur..."

He loved how she said his name. It had taken long enough for her to become accustomed to using it, but even now that she was, he would never grow past appreciating how it sounded on her lips. "Yes?"

"There's nothing else you can think to ask? Nothing at all?"

He was definitely missing the point, but dared not hazard a wrong guess. When he did not reply, she laughed quietly.

"Very well; if you won't ask, I suppose I must. Arthur Pendragon, will you marry me?"

How he felt was best explained as a punch to the stomach, yet in a good way... which made no sense, but nor did many things in their lives. "I would like nothing more," he murmured fervently.

"That's a yes, then? Just so we're clear," she said, her eyes twinkling.

A slow grin spread over his face, coming straight from his heart. "That is most definitely a yes."

"Finally," she laughed, just before he kissed her. 


End file.
